I think you should well know what fibers from certain tropical areas floss between the villi, pass gallstones back 30 yd. for a completion, de-rez the corticoresin chelates and put leins on personal biota haz cheezburger adrenostatins; but I also want to know what it takes to get Mojo-Compliant Western Blots and GE bioscan 7300s (besides the woodwork.) So, if you perhaps suggestiballed a preteratogenic gene methylation or protophosphorylation, that would be gamely.

Because (cough) 70,000 MTF spectrometer runs in the field isn't cool. [Negasonic Teenage Warhead: [sneers]]Is there still a mobile game with Ayahuasca Achievements in it, or will that only run on ColdFire emulators?

Right, one of those things that happens in intramural office meetings. Like blowing paralytic darts gone tragically backwards and affecting near the hypothalamus, but over 4 hours of discussion and with nobody to just bill the whole thing among administration costs and foot it with the victim to an ashram or hospital.

But you have no idea what you're talking about. Imagine growing up with noknowledge of western medicine and then all of the sudden giving me youropinion on cancer treatment. That's what you're doing now only it'sAmazonian curanderismo you're completely ignorant about.

How many times have you been to the Amazon? When did you go? How long did you stay? Which towns or villages did you visit? What were the names of the curanderos you worked with? What did they cure you of?

Why aren't you using your own picture of a curandero on your webpage? Why aren't you properly crediting the image you're using? Did you get permission from Santuario de la Dieta Shipibo to use their image?

What you refer to as "western" medicine is just medicine: health intervention practices that have been scientifically proven to work and whose mechanism of action is scientifically understood. It's not "western", because these practices are effective independent of the cultural background: science-based medicine works in Japan and China and Indonesia and India and Arabia and Africa and in the Amazon.

The biochemical mechanism of action of dimethyltryptamine and monamine oxidase inhibitors is well established. The pharmacological properties of B. caapi and P. viridis extracts are well established. We aren't ignorant of these things. The rules of pharmacokinetics and enzymology and biochemistry don't change just because you're in the Amazon, or because they've been incorporated into a rich and elaborate spiritual ritual.

LutherBlisset and iquitos46 are correct: from a pharmacological perspective, ayahuasca is a potent and potentially dangerous drug, which should not be used haphazardly.

Are you suggesting that in addition to its spiritual and cultural significance to the indigenous peoples of the Amazon, the use of ayahuasca has specific, established, medicinal applications? Beyond its use to purge parasites, can you elaborate on what you believe those medicinal uses are? What specific physical ailments is ayahuasca used to treat? What evidence is there to support claims of its efficacy to treat these conditions? What known or proposed biochemical mechanisms of action might give rise to these effects?

What you refer to as "western" medicine is just medicine: health intervention practices that have been scientifically proven to work and whose mechanism of action is scientifically understood. It's not "western", because these practices are effective independent of the cultural background: science-based medicine works in Japan and China and Indonesia and India and Arabia and Africa and in the Amazon.

I am talking about that the combination of drugs you are advocating, the use of a drug which is not for everyone. Your highly trained practitioner has very different ideas about the world he lives in than the average reader puff your posts, and you. And most certainly people who are fascinated by what you describe are not all ending up with a highly trained practitioner if they try it out themselves.

I won't discuss your experience with you, I also don't want to attack you. But I insist that this kind of drug harbours dangers, and fanboys and -girls are likely to underestimate these.

For the record, I have very close contact to people who suffer from mild to severe forms of drug-related psychological conditions. I know others who don't suffer in a direct sense, but who changed, and now their partners, friends and family suffer from this changes, which can be quite dramatic.

I know, first hand, how it feels to see someone you live drift into a personality disorder due to use of psychoactive substances, namely such which change your serotonin balance by acting as a serotonin antagonist. Ayahuasca does exactly that. And it doesn't matter if you believe the spirit of the plant or a chemical substance is giving you hallucinations: the results can be very consequential.

If you had a good trip, good for you. But for all that's good in both the scientific and the mystic world view, don't generalise from your experiences and don't advertise a very potent psychpharmakon as a miracle cure or mind-opening experience.

I told you I didn't want to attack you. You, on the other hand, take everything I say personal, and insult me. Please stop that.

Also, you seem to think that I argue that Ayahuasca kills people. You are, as far as I know, right that the drug didn't kill anyone. And I don't claim it did. I argue that it is a very potent psychotropic mixture, and that it is dangerous. If someone is stupid enough to combine MAOI with other substances, it might even become lethal, but since I can't remember a case described I think we don't need to discuss this further than just remarking it. We must, however, discuss your pejorative remarks towards medicine in general and pharmaceuticals in particular together with your claim that Ayahuasca "cures".

Pharmaceuticals safe life. They may kill you of used improperly, but so does Ayahuasca. If the same number of people took Ayahuasca as people take Aspirin, there would be deaths, because people tend to be careless. The dangers to a persons health by taking aspirin are, in comparison, negligible. Pharmaceuticals, in general, need to get through a scientific risk assessment, and even after approval people wouldn't use them recreational. This is also and especially true for psychotropic drugs. Where I live, you can't even buy most pharmaceuticals over the counter, and notably not any serotonin antagonists I am aware of.

By claiming "Ayahuasca cures any number of conditions", you are clearly advocating its use.

And if your last sentence, "Good, people need to change" is a direct reaction to my argument that serotonin-balance affecting drugs can have strong, sometimes lasting, and often detrimental effects on people's mental health, then I would ask you to reconsider. This is no joking issue.

I am very serious about this: psychotropic substances can be very harmful. They can be used in controlled circumstances as a part of a therapy, and shamanistic rituals might be a part of a therapy. But they don't generally "cure any number" of conditions by themselves, and they may influence people in ways which lead to suffering. And not only for the one who were under the influence.

I don't think I understand what you meant by that. When people say "free stuff" to me, generally they are talking about ideas or software that people are giving away out of pure generosity - but I'm pretty sure that's not what you're referring to?

But anyway, I enjoyed seeing your sculptures online. (Thanks, @AndreaJames!) If you're in the Mid-Atlantic US, feel free to drop by and I'll gift you some random pieces of interesting wood.

I here people refer to even quantum physics as woo simply because they have not the slightest understanding of it. Can't stand that term.

The only time I've seen someone call quantum physics "woo" is when people like Deepak Chopra dress up nonsense like quantum physics to give a veneer of respectability. In other words... it's usually quantum physicists themselves leading the charge in calling that stuff "woo."